The Andy Aupperlee Explosion 5000

Milkweed at Quixtar.
November 29, 2008.
Nikon D300. Nikon 80-400mm VR lens. EXIF.

Dad and I shot turkey and deer for Thanksgiving. Actually, it was the Saturday after Thanksgiving. Despite what you are already thinking–we’re not that Michigan. Well, Dad is pretty Michigan. This shooting involved cameras. We grabbed our Nikon D300s and Dad supplied the glass: a Nikon 80-400mm VR and a manual Nikon Reflex 500mm. Being a novice to this sort of photography, Dad let me shoot the 80-400 since it has AF. Armed with the long lenses, we climbed into the Mountaineer to begin our safari.

We first stopped at the Alticor facility on Spaulding. This used to be called Quixtar, but I think it’s called Amway Global now. Since I enjoy blogging about former Boeing executives, maybe Russ can clarify this for readers of The Andy Aupperlee Explosion 5000. Once we cleared security, Dad took me on a driving tour of wildlife hot-spots on the Quixtar/Alticor/Access Business Group/Pyxsis Innovations/Amway Global/Worldwide Dream Builders/Eddie Funkhauser campus. Since leaving the company several years ago, Dad continues to work closely with Alticor to create nature friendly terrain on its sites. The Quixtar location features several viewing platforms, a nature trail and descriptive signs detailing relevant flora and fauna.

We began by driving along the back edge of the parking lot. With the passenger window rolled down, I hung out of the car with my camera poised to snipe any stray wildlife. When on safari, if you can arrange to ride in a comfy SUV with heated leather seats, I highly recommend it. I spotted some turkeys heading up a hill, but my reaction time was too slow and they escaped into the woods. “No problem,” Dad assured me. “There’ll be plenty more of them…”

With the sun setting, Dad noticed the light hitting the milkweeds and stopped so I could get a quick shot. Hanging half my body out of the car window, I angled the massive lens and took a few frames. According to his empirical research, Dad suggested shooting this massive rig in Aperture Priority at f/8 for the sharpest results. I then went into the Auto ISO settings and plugged in a minimum shutter speed of 1/125 and a maximum ISO of 1600. This setting guaranteed me that the lens would always shoot at f/8 and that it would push ISO up to 1600 before using a shutter speed slower than 1/125. Later in the day when the light faded, I boosted the maximum ISO to 3200. To a certain extent, this setting allows the photographer to hand pick his preferred aperture and shutter speed; the camera compensates by choosing an ISO to make the exposure work.

Dave shooting by his rig.
Nikon D300. Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 lens. EXIF.

After grabbing a few milkweed shots, we continued to patrol the edge of the parking lot. Unexpectedly, Dad cranked the wheel and drove over the curve and into the woods. “This is a nature trail we had built for the employees,” he explains to me as he navigates the Mountaineer between trees. What is the fun of having a sport utility vehicle or truck if you never off road? “There’s a hill coming up, better goose it.” Dad switched on full time AWD and punched the accelerator in his cushy, now decidedly rugged ride.

Winter Pond.
Nikon D300. Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 lens. EXIF.

After climbing the hill, we descended another one while dodging saplings the entire time. We pulled up to a pond that had just frozen over. Tree stumps reached out through the ice like limbs of caged monkeys. I set aside the 80-400mm for a moment and snapped on my 11-16mm. I dialed the camera back to Program Exposure. Holding it inches from the snow, I pressed the shutter without looking through the viewfinder. After quickly checking the LCD, I made a few adjustments and tried some different angles.

When I got home, I saw that the Program Exposure and Matrix Meter settings blew the sky out to a boring white. With digital, it can be difficult to properly expose for the sky and terrain without blowing out or underexposing one. Regardless, since I was not paying attention to this while shooting, I had to fix it in post. I used a new technique in Photoshop CS4 to restore the blue sky. I selected the Lasso selection tool, set feathering to 25 pixels, and drew a selection around the sky. I even included parts of the sky that contained the tops of trees. Once I set my selection, I went to Image, Adjustments and selected the Shadows/Highlights menu. I dropped Shadows down to 0% and bumped Highlights to about 60%. This restored the blue sky without having to use complicated (and usually fake looking) gradient layers. Also, this was done with a JPEG from the camera; this was not done in RAW.

Deer Quixtar,
Nikon D300. Nikon 80-400mm VR lens. EXIF.

Continuing down the nature path, Dad assured me that we would see some deer. Moments later, we spotted one up on the hill. Dad stopped the Mountaineer and I cranked the lens out to 400mm. To guarantee that the subject of my shot would be properly exposed, I switched from Matrix Metering to Center Weighted Average (like I’ve been doing recently at concerts). I selected the center sensor on the D300′s 51 AF sensor grid and locked it there. Since I usually sight in my shots using my left eye, my big Dutch nose has a tendency to bump the directional pad on the back of the camera and unintentionally change AF sensors. We were able to observe the deer for several minutes before he disappeared into the woods. While he was visible, I made a flurry of shots. Knowing I only had a few moments to get the perfect picture created a sense of excitement; much like an episode from Cambodia earlier this year. Except this time I did not have to ride on the back of a moto scooter for 50km and hike down a waterfall–I simply pointed a huge hunk of glass out the window of a leather trimmed Mercury Mountaineer.

Wild Turkey.
Nikon D300. Nikon 80-400mm VR lens. EXIF.

On the way to Alticor Headquarters on Fulton, we passed a flock of turkeys. We pulled the car over and I made a few shots, but the diminishing light caused my shutter speed to slow. I was able to get a couple of reasonably sharp shots, but those turkeys move their heads pretty quick! It was after this that I boosted my maximum ISO to 3200.

Despite their awkwardness, Benjamin Franklin preferred the Wild Turkey to be the national bird. He considered the Turkey to be a bird of courage, and he saw the Bald Eagle as a scavenger that was lazy. Much like the Bald Eagle, Wild Turkeys faced extinction at the turn of last century. An extensive breeding effort in the mid 1900s saved the animal and they now flourish in nearly every part of the United States.

Deer at Alticor World Headquarters in Ada, MI.
Nikon D300. Nikon 80-400mm VR lens. EXIF.

Over at Alticor Headquarters, we spotted several more deer. I rested the 80-400mm lens on the passenger side mirror and fired away. If you happen to be Jon Caldwell, Matt Wolterstorff, or have the last name of Strengholt, you’re probably wondering where you can “sight” these critters in for yourself. I would not suggest breaking into Amway with your thirty-aught six. Even though we had the appropriate credentials to be on the property, the ever vigilant Alticor security stopped us just to see what we were up to. I can only imagine how much these rent-a-cops would relish drawing their long dormant sidearms if they suspected a redneck hunting on the property. My advice: catch these deer on the other side of the Grand River.

Tankers.
Nikon D300. Nikon 80-400mm VR lens. EXIF.

This is not exactly wildlife; but as the sun set it reflected off these tankers and I thought it looked cool. These things were parked in back, just west of the heliport and near the prairie where we spotted the deer.

To see more pictures, check out the slideshow below.